Halloween, Druid

Samhain Celtic calendar Coligny calendar Gaulish 62 lunar months Halloween Nos Calan Gaeaf Druid October 31 Superstition Feralia Pope Boniface IV All-hallows Eve Trick or treat Pumpkin Ducking apples Candy Ghosts Witches Black cats

A druid was a member of the priestly class in Gaul and possibly other parts of Celtic Europe during the Iron Age.

Following the invasion of Gaul by the Roman Empire, the druids were suppressed by the Roman government from the 1st century CE and disappeared from the written record by the 2nd century.

There were survivors in the British Isles, but little is known about the ancient druids as they left no written accounts.

It is said that Druidry itself is both a philosophical viewpoint and a religious view, although many Druids view themselves as Pagan Priests. Druids met as equals, they didn't have a head, or start or end, the circle of mirrors, the turning of the wheel.

Part of the role of the Druid priests was to protect the people from the spirits who might cross over. Placating such spirits is thought to have been the origin of the trick or treat tradition.

Another variation of this idea is that the souls of sinners who had died during the year were held in torment. They could only be released and given peace if the gods were pleased by the Samhain offerings

Some people condemned the Druids, they were suppose to have human sacrifices, however these are tales from the Greeks and Romans who wanted people to believe the druids were barbaric. There were animal sacrificed, which probable took place around the Samhain bonfires, at the end of harvest and start of winter.

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